Why I think Allah has favoured women

The other day I woke up to perform my fajr salaah and it was really cold. I don’t know how but I somehow managed to pull myself out from underneath the warm blankets, and I have no idea how I managed to make my wudhu in that cold. Alhamdulillah soon I was performing my salaah in the warmth of my bedroom. A while before that I heard the front door opening as my father left home to go to the Masjid. I really did not want to be him right then, having to leave home and go out in the icy cold! Then I thought about how merciful Allah Almighty is. Here I get to stay indoors, comfortably performing my prayers while enjoying the warmth of my home, and I get the same blessings that my father gets and he has to leave the warmth of his home, and go out in the cold. Subhanallah, I was really convinced that morning that Allah (SWT) has favoured women.

Now I know that there are advantages and disadvantages of being a woman and the same goes for a man, but since people are always going on about how they think Islam favours men, I thought I’d bring up some more reasons why I think that women are actually the favoured ones. When I seriously consider the responsibility put on men’s shoulders, I’m glad to be a woman.

So, let’s consider some things here: Men have to go out and earn a living, and it’s their Islamic duty to provide for their families, they have no choice in the matter, and if they do choose not to fulfil this duty, then they have to account for this by Allah. Now for us women, when we earn money, we have no duty or obligation at all to provide for anyone, we can take all our money and spend it in whatever way we like, or we can save it, the point is; WE HAVE A CHOICE AS TO WHAT WE’D LIKE TO DO WITH OUR MONEY. Of course if we decide to use it in our homes, to assist and make things easier, then we are rewarded by Allah, but if we don’t do this, well, let’s just say, we will not be held accountable because this is allowed in Islam. Sounds very much like women are the favoured one’s doesn’t it? And while we’re on the topic of work and money, if a woman does not want to work she can stay at home and even though she does this, all her needs have to be seen to by the men in her family. I can see men thinking, ‘gosh that’s unfair, I wish I could stay at home and still have my needs seen to!”

It’s true that there is childbirth, period pains and PMS, which sometimes make us wonder why men got it so easy, but when we actually look at it, there are so many blessings in being a woman. Just for being pregnant there are so many blessings in its own, and then there are the rewards of breastfeeding and all in all, mothers were favoured three times before fathers were mentioned. In the jumuah lecture last week Friday the Imam spoke about parents and quoted a hadith, which I’m sure you’ve heard before. He said something to the effect that there was a sahaaba (R.A) who carried his mother on his back and took her for hajj and he came to the Prophet (S.A.W) and asked the prophet if he had fulfilled his mother’s rights, at which the prophet (S.A.W) replied something to the effect that his actions could not even repay his mother for one drop of breast milk that she had given him, Subhanallah!

All the talk about men being favoured really allows you to start thinking about these things, personally as a woman I have never felt that Islam favours men; in fact I’ve always believed that being a woman is something special, and sometimes I still can't believe that people say the things they do about Islam and women, it honestly makes me want to scream at times to think that they have gotten things so wrong. I think the problems begin to come in when people divert from the true Islamic teachings, but that’s another story altogether. It’s going to seem like I always go on about this, but really, the truth is that discrimination between men and women, and deciding that one gender is superior to the next comes from different cultural beliefs, beliefs and customs are adopted by some Muslims even though they have no basis in Islam, and this just ends up confusing many people.

The truth of the matter is that Allah created us all, men and women, and Allah has given us both certain roles, and rights and duties that come with these roles, and Allah (SWT) can never be prejudiced against anyone, most definitely not when it comes to gender. 

So even though I know that men and women are equal in the eyes of Allah Almighty, the next time I get to appreciate the warmth and comfort of my home, while the men in my family have to go out in the cold, I know I’m not going to be able to help myself and I’ll probably end up thinking that Allah has favoured me, and Allah knows best about every single thing!

Image from; http://www.123greetings.com/events/womens_day/flowers/women18.html